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EFCC Claims Amosu Set Up Hospital With Funds Looted From NAF

Mr. Owobo said this while testifying in the trial of Mr. Amosu, a former NAF Chief of Accounts and Budgeting, Air Vice Marshal Jacob Adigun, and a former Director of Finance and Budget, Air Commodore Olugbenga Gbadebo, before Justice Mohammed Idris of the Federal High Court in Ikoyi, Lagos.

An Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) investigator, Tosin Owobo, testified on Wednesday that a former Chief of Air Staff, Air Marshal Adesola Amosu (rtd), allegedly set up a diagnostic center using funds he looted from the Nigerian Air Force (NAF).

Mr. Owobo said this while testifying in the trial of Mr. Amosu, a former NAF Chief of Accounts and Budgeting, Air Vice Marshal Jacob Adigun, and a former Director of Finance and Budget, Air Commodore Olugbenga Gbadebo, before Justice Mohammed Idris of the Federal High Court in Ikoyi, Lagos.

The EFCC accused them of diverting N21 billion from the NAF through various companies, namely: Delfina Oil and Gas Ltd, McAllan Oil And Gas Ltd, Hebron Housing and Properties Company Ltd, Trapezites BDC, Fonds and Pricey Ltd, Deegee Oil and Gas Ltd, Timsegg Investment Ltd and Solomon Health Care Ltd.

Led in evidence by prosecution counsel Rotimi Oyedepo, Mr. Owobo said his team’s investigation led to an account owned by Mr. Amosu and his wife in UBA in the name of Solomon Health Care.

“We discovered that it is a hospital and diagnostic center located in Ikeja owned and operated by Amosu and his wife. Our team also visited the premises at 24 Adeniyi Jones, Ikeja when they just started operations,” the investigator said.

“Some equipment was just being installed by General Electric, such as MRI scanners, X-Ray machines and other sophisticated medical equipment,” he said.

Mr. Owobo, who had earlier testified that Mr. Amosu transferred N677 million from the NAF to Delfina Oil and Gas and other companies between March 2014 and April 2015, said that Solomon Health Care was funded with money transferred from Delfina Oil and Gas.

He explained on January 16, 2015 that N145 million was transferred from Delfina Oil and Gas to Solomon Health Care. On January 20, 2015, the sum of N45 million was transferred to Solomon Health Care, while over N93 million was transferred to the diagnostic company from Trapezites.

BDC on January 30, 2015. The witness said another N106 million was also transferred to Solomon Health Care from Trapezites BDC on the same day.

Other amounts transferred to Solomon Health Care, he said, are N55 million on April 17, 2015; N55 million on May 6, 2015 from Mcallan Oil And Gas; N78 million on June 1, 2015 and N81 million on June 1, 2015 from the same company.

He said the balance in Solomon Health Care’s account as of April 30, 2015 was N360,640,636.25.

Mr. Owobo added that the EFCC also had cause to investigate Timsegg Investment, which he said was directed by Mr. Gbadebo.

“The accounts of Timsegg Investment received direct transfers from NAF accounts. Timsegg had accounts with UBA and FCMB. We wrote the banks, and we analysed their responses and made further discoveries,” Mr. Owobo said.

The investigator said Mr. Gbadebo transferred N12 million from the NAF Airmen Subsidy Account; N25 million from the NAF Airport Operation Account and N20 million from rge NAF account on June 4, 2014.

According to him, N10 million was transferred on July 4, 2014; N24 million on July 30, 2014; N10 million on August 29, 2014; N29 million from the NAF Jet Account on October 8, 2014; and N24 million and N65 million on October 8, 2014.

Others are N14 million from the NAF Operations account on October 31, 2014; N15 million from the NAF Jet Account on December 2, 2014; N20 million from the NAF Operations Account on May 5, 2015; N19 million from the NAF account on May 27, 2015; and N19 million from the NAF Operations Account on July 3, 2015.

The money was all transferred to Timsegg’s account, the witness claimed.

“We discovered that most of the funds were being fixed on term basis. Upon expiration, cash withdrawals were made by Gbadebo. The funds were paid to him as his share from NAF and were for his personal use,” he said.

Mr. Owobo said a property on 40A Bourdillon Road, Ikoyi, was discovered to belong to Mr. Adigun, the second defendant, which he said was acquired with money from Delfina Oil and Gas.

On Thursday, June 29, Justice Idris will rule on an application by Mr. Oyedepo to visit some of the properties allegedly acquired by the defendants that cannot be brought to court as exhibits.

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